From 1956 to today: The rise and spread of Kannada activism

Though Karnataka became united politically after 1956, the state has never had a single unified culture, as there exist a vast variety of sub-cultures and dialects spread across the state.

 

This perceived 'failure' to homogenise Karnataka culturally, and ensure Kannada domination throughout the state, is seen as the primary cause for the birth of modern Kannada activism in the sixties.

 

Such groups took root in Bengaluru in the early nineties, when the city first transformed from a sleepy cantonment town into a modern Tier One city.

 

Pro-Kannada radicals made the city their  cause célèbre, demanding that the city be more 'Kannadiga'.

 

However, this has proven a difficult, if not impossible task. While the modern city is a mix of nearly every ethnicity in India, the same has been the case for centuries now.

 

 

During the British period, the Commissioners and Diwans of Mysuru who ruled Bengaluru encouraged talented non-Kannadigas immigrants. Even illiterate, unskilled labourers, particularly Tamilians, migrated to the growing city for employment.

 

As time passed, non-Kannadigas even began to outnumber the natives in public sector enterprises and central government jobs. This led to a clamour for a 50% job reservation for Kannadigas in all sectors.

 

The failure to meet such demands fuelled the rise of Kannada chauvinistic outfits.

 

In the sixties, A.N. Krishnarao, Konanduru Lingappa, Nadigera Krishnarao, M Ramamurthy and others gave concrete form to this movement. Here are some of the major groups from that time:

 

• Karnataka Yuvajan Sabha (1957): Konanduru Lingappa started this organisation in Mysuru. He began the ‘Angreji Hatao’ movement in Karnataka through this organisation, following a call by Ram Manohar Lohia.

 

• Kannada Jagrutha Parishat and Samyukta Ranga (1962): This organisation was inspired by AN Krishnarao and M Ramamurthy. It started a quarterly titled 'Kannada Jagrutha Patra' with M Nagaraj as its chief editor. The journal could not make any profits and soon ran into deep losses. M Nagaraj committed suicide over the losses, and his death inspired next generation of activists.

 

Samyukta Ranga was an organisation that was established to bring all pro-Kannada activities and groups into a single forum.

 

• Kannada Film Artists Association was formed in the sixties to protect the interests of the Kannada film industry. At that time, Tamil cinemas were screened more than Kannada ones in Bengaluru and 'Dubbing', adding a Kannada sound mix over the original production, had made a disastrous impact on the Kannada film industry. Dr Rajkumar, GV Iyer, Balakrishna and others were the main active members of this association.

 

The Mahajan Commission (1967), formed to address the border issues of Karnataka and its neighbours, would prove to be a major impetus to the pro-Kannada movement. The commission suggested Belagavi district remain in Karnataka and Kasargod of Kerala should be attached to Karnataka.

 

Maharashtra did not accept this decision and influenced the central government to withhold the report of the commission, though the districts did remain in Karnataka. However, the agitation to keep Belagavi in Karnataka bought pro-Kannada activists even further into the limelight.

 

The sixties also saw the first great schism in the pro-Kannada outfits. The historical movie 'Kanchi Talaivan' (1964) was the trigger for ethnic strife across Bengaluru, as the film depicts the historic defeat of a Kannada emperor (Pulikeshi 2) by a Tamil Emperor (Narasimha Verma 1).

 

Pro-Kannada activism divided into two factions following this incident. Writers like AN Krishnarao publicly stated that Kannadigas would have to accept history in an unbiased way. However, leaders like M Ramamurthy claimed that such movies were made just to insult the feelings of Kannadigas.

 

After this incident, pro-Kannadiga activists began to take an active part in politics, through political parties, for the first time.

 

The lead in this was made by the Samyukta Ranga, which was divided into two factions along caste lines - The Brahmins and the non-Brahmins.

 

M Ramamurthy belonged to the Brahmin faction of the movement, and Vatal Nagaraj became the leader of the non-Brahmin side.

 

While writers, thinkers and artists were involved in Brahmin wing, the non-Brahmin faction focussed more on the grievances of ordinary folks, auto drivers, hotel workers and unskilled labourers. This division would only get stronger over time.

 

In 1970, after the demise of M Ramamurthy in 1967, Kannada activism for the first time gained political power in the state after Vatal Nagaraj established a regional political party - Kannada Chalavali Vatal Party. However, the party did not grow due to internal differences of opinions. 

 

The success of the 'Gotak' movement also drove up political ambitions among the pro-Kannada groups.

 

Initially, the education policy of Karnataka gave prominence to Sanskrit over Kannada. To resolve the problem the government formed a commission in 1980 chaired by VK Gokak, comprising linguists.

 

The commission made a report, keeping in view the interest of Kannada language. However, the government delayed the implementation of suggestions and made way for the 'Gokak Movement'. This movement united all the writers of Karnataka. This movement became widespread when Dr Rajkumar became actively involved. Even today this remains one of the milestones in the history of Kannada movements. 

 

In the aftermath of the 'Gotak' success, there was an enthusiasm among Kannada writers and thinkers to form a separate political party.

 

‘Kannada Desha’ was established by MD Nanjunda Swamy in 1987.  In 1988, poet and journalist P Lankesh formed Pragati Ranga. However, the heydey for such movements had already passed by then, and neither party would garner any votes. Both soon vanished.

 

In the eighties and nineties, pro-Kannada activism lost its sheen over to accusations of corruption and unethical behaviour. The general public came to regard them as puppets in the hands of politicians and tended to view them with disinterest. However, several of them continue to be very active:

 

Kannada Shakti Kendra: This was formed by the renowned research scholar Dr M. Chidananda Murthy in 1988. Notably, Kannada Shakti Kendra emphasises the implementation of the Sarojini Mahishi report - which recommends larger job opportunities for Kannadigas. 

 

Karnataka Rakshana Vedike: This is a is a right-wing Kannada radical organisation established by TA Narayana Gowda. The organisation claims that it has more than 6 million members.

 

Jaya Karnataka: Jaya Karnataka is a not-for-profit organisation formed by the ex-underworld don Muttappa Rai, which claims to be work for the improvement of the quality of life of the people of Karnataka.